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Abdulla the Great

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Abdulla the Great
French film poster
Directed byGregory Ratoff
Written byBoris Ingster
George St. George
Based onMy Kingdom for a Woman by Ismet Regeila
Produced byGregory Ratoff
StarringGregory Ratoff
Kay Kendall
Sydney Chaplin
Alexander D'Arcy
Marina Berti
CinematographyLee Garmes
Lambert Williamson
Edited byMaurice Rootes
Music byGeorges Auric
Lambert Williamson
Production
companies
Misr Universal Cairo
Sphinx Films
Distributed byBritish Lion Films
Release date
  • 16 February 1955 (1955-02-16) (Finland)
Running time
103 minutes
CountriesUnited Kingdom
Egypt
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1.2 million[1]

Abdulla the Great (also known as Abdullah's Harem) is a 1955 comedy film. It was directed and produced by Gregory Ratoff who also stars in the title role from a screenplay by Boris Ingster and George St. George, based on the novel My Kingdom for a Woman by Ismet Regeila.[2] The music score was by Georges Auric and the cinematography by Lee Garmes.

The film stars Gregory Ratoff, Kay Kendall, Sydney Chaplin, Alexander D'Arcy and Marina Berti. Ratoff denied that the story was a thinly veiled parody of the life of King Farouk of Egypt and the events preceding his overthrow in 1952.[3]

Plot

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The film is set in Bandaria, a Middle Eastern country whose absolute ruler, Abdullah, lives a life of great luxury, surrounded by lovely women. When Ronnie, a beautiful English model, arrives, Abdullah falls for her and offers her great riches. She resists his advances as she is more interested in Ahmed, an officer in the King's army. While this is going on, Abdullah is unaware of the growing discontent among his subjects which threatens to overthrow him.

Cast

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Reception

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The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Abdulla the Grear achieves a certain dubious topicality in the obvious invitation to "identify" its central character. The story itself, however, with its polyglot accents, lavish settings and undulating dancing girls, belongs firmly to the Hollywood tradition. Gregory Ratoff, the director/star, makes Abdulla a convincingly repellent figure, being more successful in the earlier satirical scenes than at the end, when his playing unwisely takes on a Jannings-like intensity. Kay Kendall, as the unwilling favourite, is most persuasive when railing against Abdulla's lecherous advances."[4]

Variety wrote: "Platitudinous dialog and complications do not help matters as the film vacillates between the comic and serious. The obvious story line, stilted direction and routine acting relegate this for exploitation playdates."[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Me as King Farouk? Tut Tut". Variety. 23 March 1955. p. 2.
  2. ^ "Abdulla the Great". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  3. ^ pp.89-94 Fun in Farouk's Palace LIFE 22 Mar 1954
  4. ^ "Abdulla the Great". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 24 (276): 5. 1 January 1957 – via ProQuest.
  5. ^ "Abdulla the Great". Variety. 202 (5): 16. 4 April 1956 – via ProQuest.
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